How to set the Hostname in Linux

Most, if not all, network applications rely on you to set the local host’s name to some reasonable value. This setting is usually made during the boot procedure by executing the hostname command. To set the hostname to name, enter:

# hostname name

It is common practice to use the unqualified hostname without specifying the domain name. For instance, hosts at the Virtual Brewery (described in Appendix A) might be called vale.vbrew.com or vlager.vbrew.com. These are their official fully qualified domain names (FQDNs). Their local hostnames would be the first component of the name, such as vale. However, as the local hostname is frequently used to look up the host’s IP address, you have to make sure that the resolver library is able to look up the host’s IP address. This usually means that you have to enter the name in /etc/hosts.

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Thanks to http://techgurulive.com/2009/02/26/how-to-set-the-hostname-in-linux/