Roles of a Webmaster

This article describes exactly what a webmaster is and the roles of a webmaster. In short, the webmaster is responsible for ensuring that the website is maintained and working systematically as it should. This includes making sure the hardware and software is functioning properly as well as the web servers. When one of the vital pieces of the system is not working as it should, it is the webmaster’s responsibility to troubleshoot and find the underlying problem. Once the problem is found, the webmaster fixes the problem and ensures that every aspect is once again working properly. Other terms for such positions include a web administrator, web architect, web developer and site author; all titles have the same roles of a webmaster.

When setting up a website, several things need to be considered. The webmaster must use the domain name that he or she was given or create one of their own. This domain name is then used to set up the actual site. The role of the webmaster, in this instance, is to ensure that the site has everything that the client is requesting. This can vary as some clients wish to have a website that is only used for informational purposes with a few monetizing properties, such as Adsense and other affiliate options. Other steps need to be taken when the client is selling their own product or service. Setting up shopping carts and payment areas may be a part of the webmaster’s job.

The maintenance of a website is another important role of a webmaster. In addition to the actual creation of a webpage, a webmaster must maintain the site in order for the client to feel as though they are getting their money’s worth. The webmaster must make sure that the website is running properly on a daily basis. If a problem should arise, the webmaster must then troubleshoot the problem and eliminate the problem so that the site is back up and running as quickly as possible. In addition to fixing any problems, the role of a webmaster also includes staying up to date with any changes in technology. If there is a change, the webmaster can advise the client and make any changes or updates that the client requests.

Managing the web servers is another role of a webmaster and is perhaps the most important part of the job. If the servers are not maintained, this can create a great deal of problems for the website and the client. The servers can constantly go down and make the client lose business because of inaccessibility for their customers. They can also lose money because of the amount of time lost for their employees for every minute that the server is down and their employees cannot work. If the webmaster does not maintain the server, this can also create a problem with security. With security problems, information can be stolen and more damage can occur.

Webmasters are generally responsible for knowing a certain number of development, or programming, languages. These include HTML, Javascript, Perl and PHP. HTML stands for HyperText Markup Language; it is a set of markup tags that are used to describe web pages. Javascript is a language that is used to enable access within a host environment to computational objects. Perl was developed in 1987 and is a high-level, dynamic programming language that is used for general-purposes; since 1987, it has gone under several changes and updates. PHP stands for Hypertext Preprocessor and is a general-purpose scripting language that is widely used; it is embedded in the HTML source and read through a PHP processor.

Website security goes along with maintaining the server as one of the roles of a webmaster. Security issues arise in a number of circumstances and are extremely high in instances where websites contain a lot of private information. This information can include social security numbers, credit cards numbers, addresses and other customer information. In addition to hackers having access to this information, the webmaster must ensure that they cannot access the website to steal money from the actual company.

These additional resources provide you, as the webmaster, with additional information on what you need to know in order to be efficient in your role as a webmaster.