markbognor
South East
 
Posts: 9,970
Club RR Member Number: 56
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I've just successfully modified the interweb. I've never done anything like this before. www.easypcd.co.ukIts a holding page at the moment , just a background with a title thats a clicky to e-mail, made in publisher. I've just had to learn about using FTP clients and uploading to my hosts web space and setting up emails to be redirected to my hotmail. It was all fairly easy just read through the instructions supplied by my host. I used www.123-reg.co.uk to register my domain name and as a host and email supplier. I now need to learn more about actually making web pages, got some help sheets from a collegue about using flash, but might just try and improve the publisher page with some more info and pictures first. |
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Good stuff!! Web page making can be pretty fun, especially if it's sometihng you've not done before.
If you can get hold of a copy, I'd highly recommend using Macromedia Dreamweaver for making the page. It's very easy to use if you're a novice, but also pretty darned good if you're a bit more experienced too (IMO)
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Hirst
Posted a lot
This avatar is inaccurate, I've never shaved that closely
Posts: 3,930
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The secret to making your first website is to use as many animated gif files as possible, a tiled background of a blurry screengrab, huge text and a MIDI file embedded in the page so a wonky version of "Night Fever" or something blasts out at full blast. Also have a load of scrolling marquees saying things like "This website will be updated often so check back every day! Last updated: 12 Feb 1998". But seriously I think the best way is just to open up a Notepad file and crack on with it that way. There are programs out there now like Dreamweaver and things, but I've always found HTML to be pleasingly logical. It's pretty much exactly like the code we use on here to post images up and the likes. Once you have that down, you can gradually improve things, though keep in mind that simplicity is the key! This website taught me everything I needed to know back in 2001 or something, always a useful reference: www.htmlgoodies.com/Just start on HTML and Graphics Tutorials and take it from there, that's what I'd do! |
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Last Edit: Dec 9, 2008 13:43:32 GMT by Hirst
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TS
Part of things
Posts: 558
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But seriously I think the best way is just to open up a Notepad file and crack on with it that way. There are programs out there now like Dreamweaver and things, but I've always found HTML to be pleasingly logical. Another vote for doing mark-up directly into notepad. Its slower but you'll learn a lot more and know your website inside out, how it works etc... Dreamweaver is a bit too point and click - Magic happens and outcomes a website. Now if anything goes wrong how are you going to fix it? Dreamweaver wrote the mark-up, you simply designed it. HTML (with a bit of CSS) is all you need to make a pretty decent webpage. Also personally I'd chose to learn and actually make a website before buying hosting and a domain name. The web is already littered with websites that started with the best of intentions but still say "Under construction" after a few years. |
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TS
Part of things
Posts: 558
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BTW what is the website going to be? Personal? Business?
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dan95x
Part of things
Posts: 361
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HTML code is good if you really want to learn, but WYSIWYG stuff like Dreamweaver can be easier if you want to pick stuff up as you go along. I have to run a couple of websites at work for events that we run, and have found that using Dreamweaver I have picked up a mix of doing it graphically and adjusting the code, which seems to be the best way I have found of doing it.
I have found that lots of things are 'easier' to do graphically first off, but that sometimes for problem solving or certain features, you have virtually no choice but play with code. I have had no training etc, but I have also worked from a site that was already partially built, so had an 'example' to start with and improve upon, learning as I went. As said, the code is actually quite logical and understandable once you get over the hurdle of working out what it all does! I use 123-Reg as well, they are pretty good, cheap but you still have some level of technical support if there is any problem. For Hosting, DIY host are pretty good, you get good levels of bandwidth and web-space etc for the price
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Last Edit: Dec 9, 2008 14:37:21 GMT by dan95x
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Dec 10, 2008 10:11:42 GMT
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Can I recommend www.w3schools.com? A whole load of really good tutorials on all sorts of web technologies. Learn HTML and CSS and those two will see you right for more or less anything you want to do. I would suggest as strongly as I can that you avoid WYSIWYG tools like Frontpage and Dreamweaver, for down that route lie bad habits. Stsrt with a bit of really simple HTML in a text editor and work up from there. After all, will people come to your site for the information it contains, or for its look and feel? If you would like your site to be well indexed by the search engines the following paragraphs may help. Give all your pages meaningful and relevant title tags, pick three keywords or keyword pairs from the page text that sum up the page and put them in your keyword meta tag, and write a clear and concise sentence describing the page for your description meta tag. Avoid proprietary technologies like Flash or Silverlight, the engines can't read them. Pick a meaningful and relevant page title for each page, put it in an H1 tag. Make sure your site has clear and consistent navigation. Have a clear link structure and a site map page so all the pages can easily be found by the search engines. Make sure the engines know your site is there. Get your mates to link to it. Good move, posting a link here for a start. Register it with Google Webmaster Tools, and create and submit a Google Sitemap for it. Publish an RSS feed of its content if you can. Sign up for Google Analytics so you can see how your site is being used, and tweak it where the figures aren't what you expect. There. I've just described a great chunk of what I do for a living. Now read your way through Google's webmaster guidelines: www.google.com/webmasters/. |
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Last Edit: Dec 10, 2008 10:12:31 GMT by herald948
"Jeremy Clarkson, a man we motor enthusiasts need on our side like Lewis Hamilton's F1 car needs a towing ball and a Sprite Musketeer" My motor |
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markbognor
South East
Posts: 9,970
Club RR Member Number: 56
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Dec 10, 2008 11:58:11 GMT
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Thanks for all the tips guys, I've decided to take the plunge and dive straight into using html code. The home page has changed now, it wont be staying pink. Still just a background and some text. I'm off now to find out how to put a picture in and position things on the page whoo!
Herald948 that site you linked to is seeming to be nice and useable, and Hirsts too.
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awoo
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,507
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Dec 10, 2008 12:53:27 GMT
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another vote here for notepad and HTML. i started fiddling with this in about 1999 whilst at school make a hobby page, filled with gifs and marquees ;D still use this method now even though i don't do web pages much any more. best i can offer is view the page source on websites to steal some code ideas and use this site for some nifty dhtml code - www.dynamicdrive.comas used on my page www.japcore.com - try opening the thumbnail pics to see the magic. if you want any graphics made id be happy to help as i need to up my portfolio as i want to go freelance soon. |
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eddbmxdude
Part of things
Yeah, its a turbo!
Posts: 524
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Dec 10, 2008 15:51:47 GMT
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Yep, notepad and HTML for me too. I have made many basic websites over the years using this method. More recently a mate taught me about CSS and I used it to do my current website using Notepad ;D www.voodoounicycles.comIts dead easy once you've got your head around it and its good knowing exactly what each bit of code does coz if you see something on a page that you like you can see how its done. Edd |
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Last Edit: Dec 10, 2008 15:53:34 GMT by eddbmxdude
Old skool cool!
Signature image maximum height: 80 pixels
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Dec 14, 2008 15:47:12 GMT
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If you're going to do it by hand, rather than notepad I would recommend an editor with syntax highlighting. On Windows, Notepad++ is quite good.
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TS
Part of things
Posts: 558
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Dec 14, 2008 17:24:20 GMT
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I use notetab light.
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Dec 15, 2008 10:53:03 GMT
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I use UltraEdit, though it does cost a small amount. Like other programmer's editors, it "knows" about certain file types and so it has HTML toolbars, tag library etc. It has lots of useful stuff like global or files search & replace, macro's etc.
Test stuff in at least IE and Firefox. Pref in IE6 and IE7 - you can run the free Tredosoft DLL to be able to run IE6 alongside IE7 on an IE7 PC. Or use a Virtual Machine.
If using tables for layout this is less important, but if using CSS, it's pretty vital because there are many differences in how the browsers interpret CSS.
Visual vs text ed's: no harm in using DreamWeaver, you can always easily view the code it generates and learn from it, and also edit pages in Code View anyway. Also helps if you want something up quick.
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'66 Amazon <-> '94 LS400 <-> '86 Suzuki 1135 EFE
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awoo
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,507
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Dec 15, 2008 14:02:34 GMT
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does anyone know the apple mac equivalent of notepad? ive just got an imac, tried to do some html'z and its not quite happening. i have word, where you can apparently save as html, but it just gives you a webpage with the html code fully viewable.
any ideas? (preferably free)
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moomin
Part of things
Posts: 772
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Dec 15, 2008 15:07:42 GMT
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only notepad should be used to edit teh html and only by teh l33t cos we like wasting vast amounts of time typing cod0r in rather than have software do it for us  |
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@toxicknobs
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pbottomley
Posted a lot
If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving isnt for you
Posts: 1,135
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Dec 20, 2008 14:36:27 GMT
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This website will be updated often so check back every day! Last updated: 12 Feb 1998 LOL thats such a truisum |
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markbognor
South East
Posts: 9,970
Club RR Member Number: 56
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Dec 26, 2008 22:16:37 GMT
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So after another few evenings work I'm now here:  Still pretty amateur but its looking better now. Next step is to make some shortcuts to different sections of the page. |
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Dec 26, 2008 22:21:10 GMT
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So after another few evenings work I'm now here: Still pretty amateur but its looking better now. Next step is to make some shortcuts to different sections of the page. Clear, easy to read, tells me exactly what you do and how to order, looks good from here! I don't need a PCD gauge, but if I did that page would give me what I wanted to know. |
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"Jeremy Clarkson, a man we motor enthusiasts need on our side like Lewis Hamilton's F1 car needs a towing ball and a Sprite Musketeer" My motor |
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markbognor
South East
Posts: 9,970
Club RR Member Number: 56
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Dec 29, 2008 10:09:19 GMT
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Cheers for the feedback herald.
I've learnt a bit more about using tables so I have re-jigged the products section now. I've also put in the page jumps and changed the layout a bit, but just realised that it only looks "right" on mt teeny 15" laptop screen so will be different on most peoples monitors. Next step I suppose is to split it onto separate pages and add a bit of whizzyness. I'd also like to make the pages that open with the preview pics from the products section a bit nicer, a fixed size with none of the IE controls at the top of the page. Will have to do a bit more research and see how I get on.
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awoo
Posted a lot
Posts: 1,507
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Dec 29, 2008 12:33:51 GMT
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looking good!
might be worth adding in google checkout option, as it will go straight to your back account without any paypal hassle and the fees are less. also it gives people the option to pay with a credit card. it can be found on the google home page under business solutions.
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