What is a Website?

A website is a group of globally accessible, interlinked web pages which have a single domain name. It can be developed and maintained by an individual, business or organization. The website aims to serve a variety of purposes. Example: News.

A website is hosted on a single or multiple web server. It is accessible via a network like the Internet or a private local area network via IP address. A website mostly consists of static content. It is publicly accessible to all the visitors. A website provides visual & text content which user can view and read, but not affect it ‘s functioning.

Authentication is not obligatory for informational websites. The user may ask to register to get a regular update or to access additional options. This features not available for the unregistered website visitors. The website displays the collected data and information on a specific page. The site doesn’t need to be pre-compiled. Small changes never require a full re-compilation and deployment. You just need to update the HTML code. The website is a complete product, which you access with the help of your browser.

What is a Web Application?

A web application is a software or program which is accessible using any web browser. Its frontend is usually created using languages like HTML, CSS, Javascript, which are supported by major browsers. While the backend could use any programming stack like LAMP, MEAN, etc. Unlike mobile apps, there is no specific SDK for developing web applications.

A database such as MySQL or MongoDB can be used to store data in web application development. Web Applications came to prominence with the advent of Software as a Service (SaaS) movement. A web application is designed for interaction with the end user. In a web application, the user not only read the page content but also manipulate the restricted data.

Web applications need authentication, as they offer a much broader scope of options than websites. Web application functions are quite higher and complex compared to a website. The site must be precompiled before deployment. All changes require the entire project to be re-compiled and deployed. The web application development is part of the website. It is itself not a complete website.

Characteristics Of Website

• Quality and relevant Web Content is which richly displayed.
• Can be easily searched using search engines like Google.
• User-friendly navigation and web design

Characteristics Of Web Application

• Cloud-hosted and highly scalable.
• Mostly Cross-platform.
• Modular and loosely coupled.
• It is easily tested with automated tests.