want to build a website..Where do i begin?

Magic_x_uk · 21 Oct 2008 at 14:29

As title really. I would like to build a website. Where do I get free hosting? what programs to use etc ?

I am a full virgin when it comes to this. So any help would be brilliant. It is mainly for friends and family to see as well as other people. Nothing private on it. Just want a few pages on the net with info/ photos etc.

I have my broadband with Orange. Just no idea about what are good free hosting etc ?

Like I said, I have no idea about any of this so please let me know what is my best route.

thanks

tres · 21 Oct 2008 at 14:40

Dreamweaver or Frontpage chief
For a very basic HTML website with pics, etc

That's a WYSIWYG program (What You See Is What You Get) so you can lay it out as if you're in Word, but then you can have a look at the source HTML to begin to learn a few things

As for hosting etc - i've got a reseller account, you're more than welcome to have a free account - just buy a domain!

Magic_x_uk · 21 Oct 2008 at 14:48

Thanks. I shall have a look at Dreamweaver or frontpage, Think I have Frontpage on a Microsoft office disc somewhere.

As for Domains. How do I go about looking for what I want. What websites sell them and tell me if there available ?

tres · 21 Oct 2008 at 14:49

Godaddy.com is nice and cheap for .com's - have a look on their site, you can check any domain availability

Magic_x_uk · 21 Oct 2008 at 15:06

just went on godaddy and it has my name.co.uk available for 2 years £11.54 and something called certified domain - 2 years £3.45 total : £14.99

Now

A) If i buy it on there is it a proper web site and is that web address mine then for 2 years www."myname".co.uk ?

B) I am then under the impression that if you type "myname".co.uk into the search bar of internet explorer my web site will then come up?

C) I somehow build or get someone to build me a website. Then how do I put it onto "myname".co.uk

This is all very confusing.

Thanks

ChrisB · 21 Oct 2008 at 15:08

If you really want to understand what you're doing try making a few html files on your computer and viewing them in your browser.

For a basic html guide look at w3schools: http://www.w3schools.com/html/default.asp

For a file editor I'd recommend notepad++ as it'll do syntax colouring for you.

Once you've understood what the html is doing read up on css (it's basically laying out and styling the html).

Then move onto javascript and study the html DOM.

By doing them in that order you should have a fairly good idea about how to create a decent 'website' and know the basics for interactivity.

tres · 21 Oct 2008 at 15:24

Magic_x_uk said:
just went on godaddy and it has my name.co.uk available for 2 years £11.54 and something called certified domain - 2 years £3.45 total : £14.99

Now

A) If i buy it on there is it a proper web site and is that web address mine then for 2 years www."myname".co.uk ? yes

B) I am then under the impression that if you type "myname".co.uk into the search bar of internet explorer my web site will then come up? yes (once the domain has resolved to the hosting, 24 hours usually, ignore this bit

C) I somehow build or get someone to build me a website. Then how do I put it onto "myname".co.uk once the domain is pointing to your webspace, you then upload your website onto the hosting. then it works.

This is all very confusing.

Thanks

As your man said, play with basic websites on your computer first

Chaos · 21 Oct 2008 at 17:22

I would recommend you buy this book - Head First HTML with CSS & XHTML
its a good beginner book.

orderoftheflame · 21 Oct 2008 at 21:17

ChrisB said:
If you really want to understand what you're doing try making a few html files on your computer and viewing them in your browser.

For a basic html guide look at w3schools: http://www.w3schools.com/html/default.asp

For a file editor I'd recommend notepad++ as it'll do syntax colouring for you.

Once you've understood what the html is doing read up on css (it's basically laying out and styling the html).

Then move onto javascript and study the html DOM.

By doing them in that order you should have a fairly good idea about how to create a decent 'website' and know the basics for interactivity.

+1.

w3 schools is a very good resource for someone trying to learn (and even someone that knows quite a bit). You don't need webspace to learn, but sometimes it's nice to be able to show people to get advise.

Just practice writing simple HTML pages to start with, you'll learn a hell of a lot more that way that making a big flash site straight away in dreamweaver, and the sites you make further down the line will be much better quality because of it.

As said, grab yourself a decent editor. I use PSPad. It's free, and very good for HTML.