OT: website design

cyclopsbiker
cyclopsbiker Posts: 516
edited February 2011 in Commuting chat
really OT - anyone know of a good site for getting website templates...I need to get a website made up and launched pretty soon, and I'd like to do it myself, and if anyone has a dummies guide to webhosting and such strange topics that might help me that'd be lovely :)

Comments

  • gtvlusso
    gtvlusso Posts: 5,112
    [paging] I think that Hatbeard is your man......[/paging]
  • mudcow007
    mudcow007 Posts: 3,861
    edited February 2011
    i use Ehostingfor all my site hosting, an they are really helpful with question etc

    take a look at Dreamweaver for your site building
    Keeping it classy since '83
  • I use http://Krystal.co.uk for mine, they're housed in a secret nuclear bunker and you can't get cooler than that.
  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    edited February 2011
    Depending on what you want the site to do I'd look at a CMS rather than starting with Dreamweaver. Something like Wordpress can do a lot and is a piece of cake to get going with.
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  • Oh, and if you have access to a Mac, iWeb is great and extremely easy to use.
  • mudcow007
    mudcow007 Posts: 3,861
    iWeb +1

    i hate macs but have to admit iWeb (part of iLife isnt it?) is pretty sweet, basically point an click
    Keeping it classy since '83
  • mattsaw
    mattsaw Posts: 907
    I'll second wordpress, really easy to use with a bit of practice, and it can do pretty much anything you want.
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  • suzyb
    suzyb Posts: 3,449
    Mattsaw wrote:
    I'll second wordpress, really easy to use with a bit of practice, and it can do pretty much anything you want.
    Third for wordpress.

    It also has a lot of templates so you may be able to find one that suits.
  • suzyb wrote:
    Mattsaw wrote:
    I'll second wordpress, really easy to use with a bit of practice, and it can do pretty much anything you want.
    Third for wordpress.

    It also has a lot of templates so you may be able to find one that suits.

    what they said ^^
  • mattsaw
    mattsaw Posts: 907
    clairelc wrote:
    suzyb wrote:
    Mattsaw wrote:
    I'll second wordpress, really easy to use with a bit of practice, and it can do pretty much anything you want.
    Third for wordpress.

    It also has a lot of templates so you may be able to find one that suits.

    what they said ^^

    It's also really easy to find freelancers to can edit or create cheap templates if you're looking for something a bit more 'non standard'. This for example, http://www.optimise.ws/ cost me $140
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  • FeynmanC
    FeynmanC Posts: 649
    And if you wanted someone to do that for you, my good lady is such a freelancer who could assist. Just drop me a PM.

    :wink:
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  • ok, so I'm a total novice with website design and stuff, hence my question. I've looked at wordpress and can't work out where to start....I just want a template list that I can click, then amend as I want to create my website....wordpress just keeps taking me to sites that charge for designing one....surely there's a decent site that is free? maybe I'm asking too much...or am just totally stupid :roll:
    Your's, lost....
  • mattsaw
    mattsaw Posts: 907
    ok, so I'm a total novice with website design and stuff, hence my question. I've looked at wordpress and can't work out where to start....I just want a template list that I can click, then amend as I want to create my website....wordpress just keeps taking me to sites that charge for designing one....surely there's a decent site that is free? maybe I'm asking too much...or am just totally stupid :roll:
    Your's, lost....

    http://wordpress.org/extend/themes/

    All free
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    Strava
  • thanks....now I can download a free one but just end up with a file full of files with wierd endings and nothing that looks like a webpage!!! maybe I'll just see if a friend will come round and show me
  • have you gone to the right site? There's wordpress.org, but if you go to wordpress.com you can build up the site online there for free and dont need to worry about downloading anything.
  • Wordpress is really easy to use one you have set it up initially, it takes a bit of fiddling around to get it set up if you are hosting it. I think you can get it hosted by Wordpress though where they set it up and you just choose a template and add your info.

    http://www.moonfruit.com is also pretty good for basic websites. It's free and there is quite a lot of customisabiltity.
  • mattsaw
    mattsaw Posts: 907
    thanks....now I can download a free one but just end up with a file full of files with wierd endings and nothing that looks like a webpage!!! maybe I'll just see if a friend will come round and show me

    Yep, nothing will work or make sense until you put it on a server. If you're a complete novice it might be worth going for a hosted version to start with,

    go here http://wordpress.com/ and select signup now.

    It might be a good idea to let us know a bit more about what you want the website for, what is is supposed to do and is it worth you investing time/money in?
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  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    Ah, you're missing how it works a bit.
    Wordpress is software rather than just a template to edit. It comes as a package with a wizard that walks you through configuring it, ending up with a simple front-end to play with the layout and create posts.
    You don't need to (unless you want to) get involved in manually editing layout files etc.

    http://learn.wordpress.com/
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  • thanks guys....gonna check out wordpress.com
    all I want is a website with a main page and 5 or 6 sub pages, maybe a contact form...so nothing very complicated and I'm sure I can work it out.
  • suzyb
    suzyb Posts: 3,449
    It was originally designed for blogging. But it's used for both now.
  • mattsaw
    mattsaw Posts: 907
    is wordpress for blogging or websites?

    A blog is a website, it's just another name for a CMS - Content Management System, which lets you update a website easily through an admin section without having to worry about changing HTML or messing about with coding.
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  • ok...thanks. so for a business is it better to get a wesbite developed or make your own with a blog type site?
  • mattsaw
    mattsaw Posts: 907
    ok...thanks. so for a business is it better to get a wesbite developed or make your own with a blog type site?

    Thats the thing, a CMS can to an extend be developed into anything you need, I know Ford US use Wordpress for a section of their site, as do the New York Times.

    It really comes down to your requirements, if you want something basic and don't want to mess around with updates then personally I would go with Wordpress. It WILL either take some time on your part learing about it, or paying a devloper a small amount to do the work for you.

    For larger more complicated stuff you can end up paying a lot. The agency I work for charge anywhere between £10k and £50k for a site, and I know of many that charge far more than that.

    Having said that, you could outsource the lot to India and get a developer over there to do things very cheaply, but you have to know enough about what you're doing to effectively project manage them.
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  • looks like its a leap onto the learning curve for me...as I said, I don't need anything complicated and I'm sure I can learn it with some effort. watch this space for more stupid questions!!!
  • mattsaw
    mattsaw Posts: 907
    looks like its a leap onto the learning curve for me...as I said, I don't need anything complicated and I'm sure I can learn it with some effort. watch this space for more stupid questions!!!

    It's not as bad as it first seems. The first thing I would do is to tray to understand the site structure and how you would/should structure your own site. The concept and difference between posts and pages took me a while to understand, so that's worth reading up on.
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    Strava
  • dhope
    dhope Posts: 6,699
    Or just buy Hatbeard a few drinks and he'll explain all. Buy a few more and he'll probably set it up too :D
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