Web Sites

[Guest]

Have been on your website Helen and Steve and I am really impressed. Where did you go to get such a good site or did you do it yourselves? I would like to put my pre-school onto the web and would be grateful for any advice you could give.

Thanks

Linda

[Steve]

You know your way to a person's heart, Linda. Wish I had a blushing smiley to use here...

 

Fiddlesticks was my first attempt at a website, and I keep meaning to go back to revamp it, but this one is taking up too much time!

 

Let me know what sort of advice you need and I'll be happy to offer it, although it'll have to be tomorrow. I'm just being dragged off by my kids to watch a video

 

Regards, Steve.

[Guest]

Hi Steve

Hope you enjoyed the video-can I ask what it was??? or not to put together a web site for yourself?? I love messing around on the computer, and my better or worse?? half has told me that there are programs to do your own site?? I am more than happy to go ahead with this on my own but, as you have already been there and done that, and got the t-shirt presumably!! how did you go about it??

Thanks

Linda

[Guest suziees]

hi all

 

website building my second favourite thing to do!!!!

i started using some of the online wizzy wigs that most free hosting sites offer.

i then moved on to serif webplus and now i use microsoft publisher believe it or not!

it's easy and i love it, i even got paid to build one for a friend who owns a dog training company!! so what was a hobby is now earning me spare cash too.

 

good luck and have fun

suzanne

www.allsaintspreschool.bravepages.com

[Steve]

Hi Linda -

The video was not terribly good, but quite fun at times. I think it was called Clockstoppers, about a new technology that enables people to, well, stop the clock...

 

Regarding web site stuff, as Suzanne mentions, you can do it in a number of different ways:

There are three main ways to build a website:

 

1 The difficult way - you can put a website together using nothing more than a text editor if you get to know the code. It's called HTML, and you can build a website using basic commands in this language but I don't recommend it unless you're really serious about website building.

 

2 The more flexible way - Use Macromedia Dreamweaver or a simpler web authoring program (Frontpage for example). I used Dreamweaver to make both the Fiddlesticks website and the Foundation-stage.info site.

 

3 A template package or subscription. Less flexible but very easy (apparently, I haven't done it). You can even do it online with a hosted service. Some are free (as Suzanne mentions above) and make their money out of pop up or banner advertisements on your site. Some cost money and you lose the advertising. A good cheap starter package would be something like www.123reg.co.uk. They will allow you to buy a domain name (www.lindamcdowellisbrilliant.co.uk for example), and I think they have a template building capability to allow you to put your first site together with very little experience. The hosting costs about £3 per month.

 

The template method is a good place to start, but eventually you may want more flexibility, and more power. For example the Foundation Stage Forum front page shows the latest posts from the forum, and changes constantly. This needs more technology than you'll get with a free or cheap hosting setup, and requires more knowledge to set it up.

 

Have a look around on the internet - there are many sites offering advice if you want to do it yourself. By all means email me if you're confused about stuff. It can be good fun, but can also be very time consuming...

 

Regards, Steve.

[Guest]

Thank you for all your help! I am going to put this on hold for a week or so as I am off on holiday on Saturday for a week.

I have started some investigations into dreamweaver etc. so I have a little project when I come home!!

Linda

[Helen]

Have a lovely hol!