is outlook free to use with godaddy, 1and 1... places that sell domains? do i need to download outlook?

what is web hosting? all help is great!

Ok well you don't need to have outlook for a godaddy account. If you have email with godaddy then to access it go to email.yoursite.com if you have it with a domain. If you don't know what I am talking about then forget it.

Here is a definition of web hosting:

providing space on Internet servers for the storage of World Wide Web sites which can be accessed by others through the network. This service is usually offered by ISPs or web hosting specialists.

Not too long ago; to set up a website for public access, you still need to have a server at home or office. The internet service provider simply provide you with the internet connection. That of course is expensive and time consuming; only big corporations would still do this.

Nowadays, for a few dollars per month, anyone can simply sign up with the hundreds of 'web-hosting' companies who will provide you some space on a centralised server for your website (they can even design that and register the domain name for you). So you are actually sharing a server with hundreds of other websites. As the owner, you will be given some remote access to your website. Of course both the server and internet connection are powerfully fast you probably wont notice the difference.The best thing is you do not have to be bothered with hardware/software upgrading or security.

The trick of course is to find a reputable and reliable webhosting company. And you probably get what you pay for.