someone enlighten me

[dawodus]

Basically im a student and want to make some money i study computer science but id like to give a hand at web design i have a basic knowledge on it but i need to ask a few questions that im not 100% sure on.

1.Buying a domain name
say i wanted to make websites for people would i have to buy a new domain name for each of these websites? is http://www.namecheap.com a good reliable place to get domain names?

2. Arranging hosting for website
if i wanted to arrange hosting i would have to buy from a host server provider right? iv been looking into a company called http://www.softlayer.com its the new cloud software that everyones been hyping about i believe. would i be able to store many websites that i make for people on this server ?

3.Building of the website
i learnt some html a year ago so i could just get a book and refresh my memory or if anyone knows any better ways to make a website using software like dreamweaver or photoshop or fireworks let me know.

4. would these websites that i make be secure say some where ecommerce websites or business websites or websites that held information that only administration should see?

5. can someone explain to me what a dynamic site is? , i know it using database like off mysql(which i had a little practise in about a year ago in college)

im sure il have more questions if these are answered but thats all i can think of for now

[weekend hacker]

As for where to register your domain or get hosting, there are so many places you'll just have to compare their prices and see what is right for you. If you're going to be developing a lot of websites it might be useful to get a half decent VPS instead of some very crappy shared account.(maybe even a server of your own!)

If you need to buy the domain or not depends on the client and what kind of service you offer, some will already have a domain, some might want you to make a website but not maintain it. Some might want the full package where you create the website and make sure it stays online (so you manage everything), obviously if they choose this and want a change you'll send them a nice little invoice to collect your cash for every change along with a monthly fee to cover server costs and if after a year they stop paying, then their site goes away too.

A dynamic website is one that changes(read: pretty much every website worth visiting in the world) where you don't upload new html files and change the old but you have a system in place for adding new content (a cms).
Web design is an often underestimated job, as a student expect to be payed shit and get high demands.
As you say you've only learned a bit of html and sql last year so I'd say you have a LOT to learn before you can begin this sort of stuff. As to the safety of what you create... it'll be as safe as you make it. If you code your own stuff then you better think of every possible way in and take the steps required to stop it. If you use a readily available CMS it might do a lot of this stuff for you already so you can just focus on a layout and some content.

I've seen your java code in the other thread, no offence but you have a long way to go before you're up to the challenge of creating a good website that isn't filled with security holes. I'd suggest you do a lot of missions here and practise coding some more before you entertain the idea of writing code for money.

[dawodus]

yeh i realise iv got a way to go but only just started and will be doing it every day for the next 3 years so with my own reading and regular practise using online resources from this site and my own gathered information im hoping to accellarate my learning process, you have helped me alot so thank you il look into all you said and thank you for the suggestions i think it will probably be best to use a ready made cms, as like you said my coding isnt that good yet and id be full of security hole maybe when i become proficient i can start trying the other way(i dont intend to start this up for a couple of months yet i dont think just acquiring as much knowledge as i can).

i think according to what your saying the best way would be to have my own server us cms to make the sites meaning it would be a dynamic structured site.
There are thousands of already made templates on the web i could use as well meaning i wouldnt need to do much coding right basically just putting the clients information in?
do you happen to know the right price that a server should cost as they really range in price?
thanking you for your time.

[weekend hacker]

Considering your needs I'd get a very cheap VPS, something in the $5 to $10 a month range(maybe closer to $5). If you get an actual client you'll only use it to show a working version, and when it has to go live you'd get a new VPS just for them(which might be more expensive depending on how much traffic they get).
Don't use templates though, no one will/should pay for you to simply use an existing CMS and then use a public domain template. They'll be paying you to design something, if you're just downloading it you won't have for filled your end of the deal. If it was me and I payed good money for it you'd be looking at a lawsuit. So maybe focus on design and making things look pretty, that's what the clients will look at, the code behind it will be a well known and secure CMS so its not like you're wasting time on that. Maybe even specifically focus on making templates for a CMS you like and know how to handle.
Besides that, play with some of the popular CMSs out there so you know how they work.

Greets and best of luck

side note; http://clientsfromhell.net/

[dawodus]

thank you very much for your help an information i shall start playing and looking around and see how it goes from there