Popular databases
Some of the popular databases used in web applications are MySQL, Microsoft SQL and PostgreSQL.
While some of them are free, others can be costly. The choice of the database depends on your hosting package. Most hosting packages come with free MySQL database.
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Web hosting and databases
Most web hosting packages include one or more databases where you can store and access data. This data can be product information, customer names and addresses, sales records, or even the information that appears on your web pages.
Using a database to retrieve that information may allow for more interactive visitor experience and website personalization.
The most common use of databases on the web is to serve information dynamically as it is requested. For example, in a large ecommerce website the actual product information is maintained in a database.
Updating this website is a simple matter of changing the data. Without this system, you would have to create static pages for every product. This task can become impossible to manage with hundreds or thousands of products.
Dynamic pages use a template for the static content of the site such as headers, menus and footers. The server software inserts the content of the database into the template before the page is displayed in a browser.
Any content from the database can be placed anywhere on a dynamic page. This allows you to set up visually appealing pages with text, pictures and, for example, shopping suggestions like: "Customers who bought this also bought..."
Databases can be used for storing and accessing customer records to allow you to tailor your pages according to your customer's previous purchases. Each page could have personalized messages such as greetings and forms pre-populated with customer's information.
Another use of a database is mailing lists. Many websites email information to their visitors to remind them about the site and encourage them to visit again.
Email addresses can be stored in a database and retrieved when needed. The newsletters themselves can be archived in a database so that visitors can browse or search through previous mailings.
Each database can be divided into tables - a complete set of data. One database could be used for most of your website information. The number of databases that your site needs depends on how many and what kind of applications you will run.
We recommend a few excellent shared hosting packages featuring free MySQL databases.