How to Set-up a Website for Newbies

Today, setting-up a website is just as simple as signing-up. You don’t actually have to be knowledgeable in mark-up language (HTML) and/or scripting languages like PHP and ASP. Also, you don’t necessarily need to pay for web-hosting to host your website because there are lots of available free web-hosting services in the internet today.

When setting up a website, the first thing that you need to know is what kind of website that you want to established. What particular industry or niche is your target? Is it something like a music website or an art related website?

Second is, how are you going to deliver your content to your readers. Is it in a form of a portal, forum, directory, blog or combinations of both? This one is important because it will determine the kind of script that you could use to build your website. There are lots of free scripts in the internet that you could use to build your website. Most of them are written in PHP and MySQL and well supported by the authors. Listed below are, currently, the most popular scripts that are free for download;

1. Phpnuke (phpnuke.org) – Community portal
2. Phpbb (phpbb.com) – Community forum
3. wordpress (wordpress.org) – Blog
4. Mediawiki (mediawiki.org) – Wiki
5. Php link Directory (phplinkdirectory.com) – directory

These scripts are easy to use that you don’t actually need to understand PHP scripting language to install and run it. You’ll just have to rely on their support forums and documentation.

If you intend not to use php scripts, you could also build a website using HTML editors like Microsoft Frontpage. Or you could also use Microsoft Word, but save your page as html pages (File->Save as web page…)

Third, after creating your web pages or conceptualizing your website design, the next step to plan is how you want your website to be hosted. Do you want to own a domain, like, www.yourname.com? [Click here to learn more] Or, you want your website to be hosted for free? [Now, Click here to view some list of recommended free web hosting providers]

You could also publish your content in a blog, like blogspot.com. Publishing website content in a blog is one of the most popular today because it is just as easy as signing up. All of the tools that you will be needed are already embedded in the website.