The GoDaddy control panel includes some simple buttons for transferring files to your server, managing common tasks and applications, logging in via a secure terminal session (SSH), and setting up e-mail accounts. Each hosting provider uses a slightly different layout for these icons and tasks, and unfortunately you can't evaluate them in any depth before purchasing your hosting contract.

Next, you must decide where to host your e-mail program for your domain. You can use your registrar to host your e-mail--but if you do and you want to switch registrars down the road, you'll run into the same same complications that arise if with regard to Web hosting. Another option is to use the same provider that runs your Web site; providers usually offer special deals to make this affordable.

Or you can use Google for your e-mail domain, as I do. Google's e-mail hosting uses the same Webmail interface as Gmail, or you can set it up to work with your Outlook or .

Google has two different plans: a free one (called Google Apps Standard Edition) that's good for up to 50 users and provides up to 7 GB of storage each, and a high-end version (called Google Apps Premier Edition) that costs $50 per user per year and sets aside up to 25GB of storage per user. Nonprofit and educational institutions can get Google Apps Premier Edition for free. The page where you is easy to overlook. The process for subscribing to the premier edition .

As part of this process, you'll need to set up the Cname (aliases) DNS record at your registrar, instructing the registrar to start sending e-mail to Google to handle. The Google Apps Help page has . If you decide to use Wordpress.com domain mapping and Google Apps e-mail hosting, consult WordPress Support's discussion of "."