I’m writing this article assuming you’re running Windows XP on your computer. Even if you are not, you can use this article to setup these three on almost all basic Windows flavors.

A November 2003 survey published by the UK-based Internet services company Netcraft made the claim that the Apache Web server “has a significant percentage gain” over its chief rival, Microsoft’s Internet Information Services (IIS), and now controls over two-thirds of the global Web server market. Only days later, Port80 Software released a survey stating that “Microsoft IIS maintains dominance of the corporate Web server market” with 53.8 percent of the market. With two seemingly similar surveys drawing contradictory conclusions, clearly the question of whose software powers the majority of the Web server market demands a deeper examination.

Microsoft dominates the software world because they are better at strategy than anyone else. Beginning with the way they beat everyone to the punch with Altair BASIC, to their decision to embrace the PC platform, over and over we see very sharp strategy from Microsoft. MSN is already a very popular search service. They’re also an ISP, and a major portal. 1/3 of web users use MSN for one thing or another, not necessarily search, but MSN is already big. They serve about 12-15% of the searches on any given day.

By Jean-Baptiste Minchelli

As technology changes, so do the tools that we use to manipulate it. Today the Internet is available from a number of devices, both connected and portable.

Masking or anonymizing a Web server involves removing identifying details that intruders could use to detect your OS and Web server vendor and version. This information, while providing little or no utility to legitimate users, is often the starting place for crackers, blackhat hackers and “script kiddies”.

As an IIS administrator it sometimes gets downright annoying having to fend off all the insults from Apache admins I meet claming innate server superiority. Generally the discussion about Web administration starts first with all the various security holes plaguing IIS and the negative press the platform garnered over the last year.

Back in Issue 69 (May, 2001) of The Delphi Magazine in Apache Shared Modules, I looked at the Apache Web server running on Linux and how Kylix could be used to write CGI applications and also Apache shared modules or DSOs (the main thrust of the article). That was shortly after Kylix had been released, and discussed how to overcome a variety of problems, including the fact that the standard Apache binary distribution is not suitable for using shared modules.

I’m not sure if it is a rumor or a reality, but they say 55%-60% web sites on the Net are run on Apache Web Servers.

Setting up your own Windows e-commerce site may seem like a daunting task at first. There is quite a bit to know, though with a basic understanding of the underpinnings and a few good tools, you’ll be on your way in no time at all.

Apache, the most popular web server on earth, is distributed with a large number of modules, some of which are included by default when you compile the package, and some which aren’t. One of those that you can optionally compile is mod_vhost_alias, which I find particularly useful. It’s been available since Apache version 1.3.7.