How do you get the first part of a url like "search.example.com"

[appleg5ive]

How do you get the bit in front an url, for example:

http://search.example.com

Is this something you would have to pay extra for when you buy a domain and hosting, or are there special sections within the site to make these areas?

[edited by: tedster at 9:57 am (utc) on Sep. 1, 2004]
[edit reason] use example.com [/edit]

[deejay]

'the only stupid question is the one unasked'. - someoneorother

I'm guessing you mean the 'search' rather than the more usual 'www'?

they're called subdomains. If you look at your hosting package they'll probably indicate how many subdomains you are allowed to create on that package.

I have a mediumish sort of package on most of my sites and can create up to 5 I think from memory... so could have, say, shopping.widgets.com, search.widgets.com, history.widgets.com, etc, as well as the www.

I really haven't delved into using subdomains, but did set one up on one of my sites the other day just to play with. Now I can't say that my setup is standard (just because I don't know), but the subdomain actually appeared in my site's file structure as if it were a folder on the main domain, ie, in my file system it looks like it would be www.widgets/blue/... but in fact is seen by the visitor as blue.widgets.com

[MatthewHSE]

I have standard shared hosting and am allowed unlimited sub-domains. There's normally a very easy-to-use admin panel to allow you to add sub-domains.

Never found them very useful myself, perhaps because my domain is already as long as your arm . . .

[vkaryl]

deejay - that's how it works on my host as well (not that even two of us make a "standard"!)

[tedster]

Never found them very useful myself, perhaps because my domain is already as long as your arm . . .

Isn't that one good reason to use subdomains? They can shorten your URLS a bit.
from:
http://www.averylongdomainnameindeed.com/key/
to:
http://key.averylongdomainnameindeed.com/

[mincklerstraat]

Paynt, who used to admin in webmasterworld, really liked the theory behind subdomains. Search the forum for paint canonicals - or here's one thread - [webmasterworld.com...]

'Canonicals' is what she calls something like a themed subsite, sort of like a mini-'about.com' style division of your site, with a links page, a whatever page, and whatnot, for each of these subparts. And one of the main ways to organize your site in this way is by using subdomains.