Trying to understand DNS and Virtual Hosting
 

I am very new to web hosting but I have managed to get Apache - PHP - MySQL up and running on the first try. I have been reading about virtual hosting and have found that there are 2 ways. IP based and Name Based. So far I understand, The documents talk about making changes to DNS however I am unfirmiliar with DNS. All I know is that DNS changes server names into numbers and seems to point requests to my server. Is it possible to host my own DNS? My ISP offers a DNS for $5.00 a month, but I am not sure what this was for. They did tell me that if I wanted to host my own mail server then I would need a DNS for $5.00 a mouth. Does this sound right? What software might I use for a DNS server. Thanks for your help.

Welcome to LQ!
Check out bind project page http://www.isc.org/products/BIND/
espacially its documentation page, to walk you through setup and configuration step-by-step will take ages, so why don't you start getting familiar with bind, download it, install it, try to configure it yourself, and if you fail ask the questions, ok? :)
A side note: you are on a fast feed with static IP, right?

Thanks for the info I will check it out.

I am not sure what "fast feed with static IP" is!

I do have 2 static IP address but am not sure what fast feed is.

We use a cable modem into a hub and 2 servers each using its own IP.

Where can I find info on fast feed?

Thanks again