[plug] Speakers needed.

[Colin Muller]

> As a practical example, once the name has been bought, (how) can I
> put a PostNuke server on my ISP webspace if the ISP has mysql anf
> php, or do I need root privilages to install/maintain?   <--
> implying I nees to host apache on MY computer..

That will depend on which ISP you're with and/or how much you're
paying them. If you have this requirement, you'd be well advised to
make it a specific question you ask before you decide on an ISP to go
with. If you have ADSL with fixed IP address available, hosting stuff
on your own server will very likely be your cheapest option, since it
combines your access and hosting costs in one package.

> A separate question.. When SSL is used with a webpage, and the
> webpage requires logging on, does the SSL merely handle the
> encryption/verification and the logging on process is coded
> separately, OR does SSL (apache-ssl) handle all of it?

SSL just encrypts everything that flows between browser and server.
Once decrypted at the server end, the request gets handled in the same
way as it would if SSL were not being used, so form input like logins
will usually be handled by a CGI program or servlet or whatever. The
decryption is normally done before the request is passed on to the
handler, so there's generally no difference in the way the handler is
written for SSL and non-SSL connections.

Colin