Ask anyone to name a web server for Linux and they'll either mention Apache or be deliberately obtuse by picking something else. It's not that there aren't alternatives, but Apache is everywhere. The others have their advantages, often being lighter, but if you're ever going to transfer a site from your local server to a commercial one, the chances are that it'll run Apache and all your configurations will copy straight across.

Why would you want to install a web server? There are many reasons, but only one needs to apply for you to want to proceed.

    * Develop and test a website before transferring to a live server.
    * Make documents available over a local network or intranet.
    * Run your own private site for family and friends only.
    * Experiment with various web-based programs.
    * Because you can!

Getting started

Just about every distro has Apache in its repositories, so install it through your package manager (you may even find it was installed by default). Web servers are rarely run through inetd, but instead are started as separate processes when you boot.
Root access

Installing and configuring a server usually requires root access. Your distro's administration tools will prompt for a password when they need this, but you have to take care of it yourself when editing configuration files. Either use a root terminal to launch your editor or use sudo to launch it, for example:

sudo gedit /etc/apache2/httpd.conf

That command will work in U