can anyone tell me what .htaccess is, what it's for, and is there a online documentation for it?
Thanks,
Peter
.htaccess is a file containing various server congfiguration options, letting you change the way the server behaves on a directory-by-directory basis eg custom 404 pages etc.
The best online resource for learning about it is probably right here :)
We've had many discussions on it's features and uses - try using 'site search' (top of the page, next to the logo) to search for htaccess - there should be enough there to keep you reading for a while ;)